In a restaurant, tavern, nightclub, or other public setting, the service staff has the task of determining if patrons require subsequent beverage(s) after their original service. In many instances, patrons have a problem getting a server's attention, or a server may not be as attentive as he/she should be in providing follow-up service. This problem is often attributable to poor or incomplete communication between the patron and the service staff. Resulting effects of this poor or incomplete communication include reduced revenue for the service establishment, a determination by the patron of poor service by the service staff, little or no gratuity for services rendered, decisions to leave an establishment prior to when one might leave if services were rendered more quickly, and ultimately, a decision not to return to an establishment due to the expectation that poor services will be rendered in the future.
Up until the present time, communication between service staff and patrons has been either by verbal, suggestive motioning or sign language, or by visual inspection of empty or nearly empty glass and/or plastic ware by the service staff.
A secondary communication method would be most helpful in providing information to service staff without direct communication interface between the server and patron.
Also, management of service staff by establishment managers and/or owners have a three tiered problem in determining:                (a) the proper number of service staff employees required for a static or dynamic patron load;        (b) the efficiency of overall service team performance, and;        (c) the individual performance of service staff employees in specific service tasks or sections.        
Any of these above three components, or any combination of the above components, could be responsible for the resulting effects of poor or incomplete communications between the patrons and service staff cited above.
Up until the present time, managers have relied on observation, interview techniques, historical data, individual customer feedback, and overall establishment performance in managing service staff employees.
To assist establishment managers in managing: (a) staff load-matching, (b) service efficiency, and (c) individual performance, a secondary communication method, which is a one-to-many point method, would be most helpful in determining the immediate load, efficiency, and individual performance of service staff employees. Also, a recording, synthesis, and analysis of communication data from a secondary communications method would be most helpful in evaluating future staffing levels, efficiency improvement and/or gaps, and individual performance improvements and/or gaps.
There does not yet exist a device that is either integral to or attached to a beverage consumption vessel which addresses the solution to the above cited problem.
Therefore, there is a need for a device for attachment to or integration into a cup that signals a user.
There is also a need for a device that can be easily used and does not effect the taste or sanitary conditions of the beverage in the cup.
There is also a need for a device that can be conveniently connected to a beverage cup or glass.